Forgetting Forever
by Em Kay Who
Summary: She once promised him forever. What would happen if that promise was forgotten? Loosely based on the book/movie The Vow.
1. Prologue

**A/N: This story came to me really suddenly and would not leave me alone. So here we are. No worries, I am still working on In My Life as well as getting ready to start Just As It Should Be (The Old Team's sequel).**

**Many thanks go to Ash for her encouragement of the story, despite the heartache it may give her. This story is loosely based on the book/movie The Vow. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anythign related. That goes to the BBC.**

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**~Prologue~**

"The gob on that brother of yours never ceases to amaze me."

Rose giggled as her husband slumped on the bed. They were staying at her parent's mansion for the holidays and while he may grumble and complain about domestics, Rose knew he loved every minute of it. "Huh. Wonder where he gets that from," she teased.

"Not me," the Doctor denied. "I'm not related to him by blood."

"Maybe not, but you're his hero. He wants to be just like you."

He quirked an eyebrow. "He shouldn't."

Rose scooted up behind him and began massaging his shoulders. "I beg to differ, husband."

"Whatever you say, wife."

"He's asleep now, yeah?"

"Yep. Four bedtime stories later, he's asleep."

"It was sweet of you to offer to put him to bed."

The Doctor shrugged. He may whinge a bit about the lad, but truthfully, Tony Tyler was his favourite person in this universe, besides Rose. "Your parents looked exhausted. Thought they might like a break."

"Mmmm." She kissed the top of his head. "I have one last present for you, you know."

He turned around and pulled her on his lap. "Really? You already gave me a brilliant one this morning!"

"The one when we were alone or the one you unwrapped in front of the family?" she asked with a cheeky grin.

"Both." He winked.

"Well, I have one more for you. One I wanted to give in private." Rose scooted off the bed and pulled a small gift bag out of her bedside table drawer.

"Oh."

"Oi. What's that face for?"

"I thought what was under that dressing gown was my present."

Rose blushed and muttered, "Insatiable," under her breath. "You get to unwrap _that_ later. First, open this."

He pulled her back onto his lap and obediently began to open his present. After all the tissue paper had been removed from the bag, he pulled, what appeared to be, a small beige compact out. "Huh. Uh... Thank you?" he said, unsure of what it was or why Rose was giving it to him.

She sighed and shook her head. "Open it up, Doctor."

Inside the compact, he found empty foil packaging that looked as if it may have held small pills in it, but now there were holes popped through it. He looked up with guilt and confusion written all over his face. "I'm trying to be appreciative of this gift, Rose, really I am. But what exactly is this?"

"That's what my birth control comes in," she informed.

"Okaaay. And you want me to go to the pharmacy to refill your prescription?" he questioned in true husbandly fashion.

"No, you nutter." She kissed his cheek. "I don't want a refill. That's my gift."

Realisation lit up his face. "Really?... You want?..."

She nodded her head. "'Bout time, I reckon."

"You think we're ready?" he asked with a gulp.

"Not a bit!" she answered through a laugh. "But when have we ever been ready for anything life's thrown at us?" She brushed her lips across his. "I want to have a baby with you."

"Oh, Rose." He pulled her in for a lip bruising kiss. "Nothing would make me happier."

"Merry Christmas, Doctor."

"Merry Christmas, Rose."

* * *

The next morning, the Doctor groaned as he turned over in bed and realised that he was now alone... and naked. Naked and alone. He cracked open an eye and saw his wife, fully dressed and brushing her hair. "Why do you have clothes on?" he grumbled through a yawn.

"I promised Tony last night that if it snowed while we were sleeping, I would go out and play in it with him." Rose nodded to the window. "It snowed, and you know I'm a woman of my word. Besides, if I don't go find him, he'll only come searching for me."

Her husband frowned and made sure the duvet was covering his important bits. "Don't want that," he conceded.

"Nope." She moved forward and kissed his forehead. "Take a shower then meet me downstairs. You'll come out and play with us, yeah?"

He smiled. "Course I will." Just as she made it to their door he called out her name to stop her.

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

Her grin lit up the room. "I love you too, Doctor."

* * *

"Morning, mum," Rose greeted as she entered the kitchen.

"Morning, sweetheart," her mother responded half heartedly.

"What's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing. I didn't realise how much milk we used up last night and now we're out. I'm gonna have to make a run to Tesco's."

Rose took in her mother's appearance and noticed that the older woman was still in her dressing gown. Knowing how her dad liked to lounge on his days off, her guess was he was in the same state as well. "I'll do it for you, mum. I'm already dressed."

"You sure, sweetheart?"

"It's no problem. I'll should only take me about ten minutes. Just let Tony know that we'll play in the snow as soon as I'm back." Rose pulled her car keys off the hook they kept on the wall. "The Doctor should be down soon, but I'll probably be back by then."

Jackie kissed her daughter's cheek. "Thanks, love."

* * *

Thirty minutes later, the Doctor finally made his way downstairs and found the two male Tylers sitting at the dining room table. "Where's Rose? I thought she was going to play in the snow with you?"

Tony looked up at his brother-in-law. "She is, but she had to go to Tesco to get milk."

"Don't know what is taking her so long," Jackie proclaimed as she waltzed out of the kitchen. "Suppose we'll have to have our tea with just sugar."

Pete looked up from his newspaper. "It's probably packed."

"It's Boxing Day. Who'd be shopping for groceries today?"

"Probably people like us who realised after all the hot chocolate they drank last night, they were out of milk."

Suddenly the phone began ringing causing Jackie to scowl. "Oh, lord. Who's calling us now? It better not be Torchwood. The aliens can wait till tomorrow."

Her husband chuckled. "Don't worry, it's probably just Jake. He said he would ring before stopping by."

As Pete went to the kitchen to answer the call, Tony turned to the Doctor and asked, "When Rose comes back, do you want to have a snowball fight? Boys against girls?"

"Now, Tony, would that be fair to your sister? There would be two boys and one girl," Jackie reminded.

"But, mummy, have you seen Rose fight? She scary!"

The Doctor laughed. "He's right. I think it only be fair if it was us two against her." He turned to the young lad next to him. "Did your sister ever tell you about the time she challenged Jack and I to-"

Jackie's voice cut him off. "Pete? What is it? What's wrong? Is Jake-"

He stopped her. "It wasn't Jake. It was the hospital."

The Doctor felt his one heart drop as he took in his wife's father's appearance. Since arriving in this universe over three years ago, he had never seen Pete Tyler look so weak. No matter the crisis, he always remained calm, cool, and collected. Yet now his eyes were ringed in red, and by the way he was gripping the door frame, it looked as if he would collapse at any moment.

Pete took in a shaky breath as he met the Doctor's gaze. "There's been an accident... It's Rose."

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**Please review! xoxo**


	2. Chapter One

**A/N: Thank you so so much to my followers, to those who have already favorited, and to everyone who has reviewed this story. You guys are wonderful.**

**Note: While I personally consider the deleted scene from Journey's End where the Doctor gives Rose and TenToo a piece of TARDIS coral as canon... For the sake of this story, we're going to pretend like it never happened! Sorry!**

**Trigger Warning: This chapter contains descriptions of a car accident and the injuries caused by accident.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That goes to the BBC. *One line below has been borrowed from the movie The Vow. Credit for that line goes to it's specific writer.***

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Tony Tyler may be six years old, but he was not naive. At least... not when it came to his family. He knew his mother and sister were originally from parallel universe (He, of course, had to ask what parallel meant). He knew his mum was originally married to another version of his dad and his dad was originally married to another version of his mum. He knew that his dad was not technically his sister's dad. But he knew it didn't matter to them. Not any more. He also knew that when his sister was nineteen years old, she ran away with a nine hundred year old alien and travelled around in time and space. Because of that, his mum and sister eventually got trapped in the universe they now lived in. He was very aware of the fact that when he was two years old, the stars started going out and when he was three his sister made her way back to her original universe so she could find that alien she used to travel with. His sister came back though. And now she was married to a part human version of that time-travelling alien. And his name is the Doctor.

Tony Tyler was not naive when it came to his family. He knew they lived dangerous lives. His dad was the head of Torchwood, an organization that prided itself on defending the Earth and helping those who needed help. Even if those who needed the help might be from another planet. His sister was a top field team leader for Torchwood and was head liaison for any intergalactic communications (He was pretty sure that meant she got to be the first to talk to any aliens!). His brother-in-law, while a very popular professor at a local university, was also a special consultant (His sister always said that the only reason he accepted that position with Torchwood was so he could have full access to the vaults) with the organization. Even his mum had hopped universes when the stars were going out!

All in all, Tony was not unaccustomed to going to visit someone in the hospital. Especially his sister. Jeopardy friendly, the Doctor always said. Usually Tony would be left at home with his nanny Mrs. Rhodes, while his mum went to check on his sister. Once it was deemed acceptable to visit, Tony would pack up the artwork he would make for her and go see his her. Thankfully, his sister had been lucky. The injuries she had received in the last six years had never been too serious. A broken arm here, a fractured foot there. The longest hospital stay was when she had become trapped in a warehouse that was on fire. Whenever his sister spoke for the next month, she sounded like a toad! Tony thought it was great... His mum did not.

This time it was bad. Tony knew that by the way his mum didn't even bother trying to phone Mrs. Rhodes. Instead she ran upstairs with his dad and changed into real clothes in record time. The next thing you knew his mum shoved a jacket on him (She hadn't even bothered with a hat or scarf!) and his dad practically threw him in the back of his black Torchwood SUV.

What scared Tony the most though, was how silent the car ride was. The only sound heard was his mother's sniffles from where she sat next to him in the backseat. His dad was driving like a cautious mad man. It was odd for Tony to see his family behaving so out of character. He kept glancing to the front seat where the Doctor was perched, waiting for him to make some quip about Rose's jeopardy friendliness. But there was nothing. The Doctor was silent and that terrified the little boy.

When they arrived at the hospital, they broke out into a run. His mum held tightly to his hand and Tony tried his best to keep up. He jumped when he heard his dad shout at the lady at the front desk. His dad _never _shouted. Not even when he got very cross. Not even when Tony was five and decided to see what would happen if he put a magnet up to the telly screen (It makes pretty colors! That unfortunately don't go away).

"They're seeing to her now, sir," he heard the woman respond in a tone he could only assume was her trying to remain calm. "Please, have a seat. I promise that as soon as I have an update, I will let you know."

"Have a seat!? We're not bloody waiting for a movie at the cinema! Where's my daughter!?" his mum practically screeched.

His dad grabbed his mum's arm. "Jacks, you need to calm down." Tony pretended not to notice the way his dad nodded his head towards him, as if they just remembered he was there.

Tony sighed with relief when he saw his sister's best friend, Jake, rush into the waiting area around thirty minutes later. Jake would make sense of all this. Mum would start fussing over how skinny he was and dad would start talking business and meanwhile Jake would start joking with the Doctor and it would all be better. He was a top Torchwood field team leader, like his sister, he wasn't going to freak out like the others. Or maybe he would.

"Where is she? What happened!? Have you heard anything?" Jake asked the Doctor frantically.

Tony felt his stomach turn in knots when the Doctor didn't answer. His dad cleared his throat and spoke up, "We only know that they're seeing to her now. I've already phoned Owen and he should be here shortly."

"Hell," he muttered. "What was she doing out?"

"Made a Tesco run for milk. We were out."

Tony heard his mum break out into sobs. "It's all my fault. I should have gone myself!" Before anyone could respond there was a deep, yet quiet, cough from behind them.

"Dr. Smith?" a man in uniform asked.

"That's me," the Doctor responded, speaking for the first time since they left the Tyler mansion.

"It's about your wife's accident. Can we talk in private?"

"Certainly. This is my wife's father, Pete Tyler. I'd like him to come with us."

"Of course, Dr. Smith."

Tony watched in discomfort as his dad and brother-in-law walked off to speak to the stranger. He suddenly wished they were at Torchwood Medical and not this hospital. He wasn't even sure of the name! Everyone knew everyone at Torchwood and it wasn't so scary. And it didn't smell so funny. This place smelled funny. He shifted in his seat as a growing sensation continued to build. He wasn't sure how much longer he could hold it, but he was too afraid to speak up. Jake noticed something was wrong though. That's why Tony like him. He always noticed things.

"Hey, little man. What's up?"

Tony glanced at where his mum had begun pacing and whispered, "I... uh... I need to use the loo. Bad."

"Well, why didn't you say anything?"

"I didn't want to bother."

Jake gave him a sympathetic look. "You're a good kid. Come on, I'll take you to the loo."

* * *

The Doctor couldn't speak. He just couldn't. Because if he opened his mouth he knew he would break down. And that was not acceptable. He could not, no, would not break down. He wasn't so sure what made this time any different. Since being in Pete's World for the past three years, Rose had been in the hospital a total of eight times and he knew that the three years she had been here without him, there had been even more times. She had always been treated at Torchwood Medical, the hospital that cared for both Torchwood agents and aliens alike. The longest she even had to stay was the time she had been trapped in that damn burning warehouse and received lung damage. Thankfully, the damage hadn't been lasting. There was something off this time though. Something in the air was telling him that this wouldn't just be an overnight stay.

The Doctor hated Rose's job. He hated the dangers it possessed. Hated the calls he received telling him she'd been injured on yet another mission she had insisted on being a part of. He couldn't blame her though. Not really. In fact, despite hating her job, he was immensely proud of her. The universe, no, the whole of creation, was a better place because of her. Rose Tyler: Defender of the Omniverse.

But now, here he was, in a parallel version of Royal Hope Hospital (This one was apparently just called Hope Hospital), listening to some PC tell him how his wife had been seriously injured, not working for Torchwood, but because she was stopped at a bloody traffic light and had been plowed into from behind by large lorry truck. The Doctor felt bile rise in his throat when the PC told him that apparently Rose hadn't been wearing her seatbelt and upon impact, had been ejected from the car and thrown through the windshield, while her car catapulted into a nearby pole.

Knowing he wouldn't be able to make it to a toilet, the Doctor bent over the nearest waste bin and emptied the contents of his stomach. Which, admittedly, wasn't much. A minute later, he felt a cool flannel being placed on the back of his neck. Pete must have quickly retrieved one from a nearby nurse. When he was sure the last of his retching was over, the Doctor braced his hands on the wall in front of him.

"I'm sorry," he apologised in a harsh whisper.

Pete placed his hand on the Doctor's shoulder. "Don't be. I was fighting a similar reaction myself." He handed him a plastic cup of water. "Sip this. Eventually you're going to need something on your stomach."

Obediently, he sipped the water, but said, "I couldn't eat even if I wanted too."

"I know. That's why I said eventually."

"It doesn't make sense. Why wasn't she wearing her seatbelt? She ALWAYS wears her seatbelt! In fact, she gets mad at me because I forget mine!"

Pete shook his head. "I don't know. I can tell you this much though, I'm calling Sato and getting her to go through every bit of CCTV from the surrounding area. I want to know exactly what happened."

The Doctor looked around and realised they were alone. "What happened to the PC?"

"Said he would give us some privacy."

"And the lorry driver? What happened to him? Why didn't he stop?!"

"Apparently he's being treated for minor injuries and is being questioned as we speak," his father-in-law bit out.

His eyes darkened. "Yeah? Well, I've got some questions for him myself."

Pete grabbed his arm. "Don't. Don't do this. Right now we need to focus on what's happening with Rose. I promise, if there is a need, we will make sure the lorry driver will pay for his actions. Right now, that can't be our focus."

The Doctor pinched the bridge of his nose. "I can't lose her Pete. I can't. I have nothing in this universe. She's it. She is all I have and if I lose her..." He stopped and took a deep breath, willing himself not to cry.

"That's not true. You have us. You have me, and Jackie, and Tony. We are your family too. No matter what. Let's not think about losing her though. We don't even know the extent of her injuries yet and our girl's a fighter."

* * *

When the Doctor and Pete rejoined the others, Jake informed them that Dr. Owen Harper, Chief Medical Officer for Torchwood, had arrived and was now working along side the physicians who had been attending Rose. The Doctor felt a small sense of relief at this words, while he personally wasn't the biggest fan of Dr. Harper when he first met him, Rose considered him a good friend and completely trusted him with her health. And he couldn't deny that Owen was damn good at his job.

The Doctor slumped in a nearby chair as the wait for news of Rose continued. Suddenly, he felt a small cool hand slip into his. He looked up and saw that Tony had moved to sit next to him. "Anthony Tyler," he said in an exhale before kissing the top of the boy's head.

"She'll be okay, Doctor. You know how I know?" Tony asked.

He merely shook his head.

"She promised we would play with me in the snow and Rose always keeps her promises."

The Doctor couldn't help but feel a pang of emotion as he observed the little blonde boy who reminded him so much of his wife. From his expressive brown eyes to his mischievous grin, this boy was a Tyler though and through. "You know what, Tony? You are absolutely right."

* * *

Three hours passed before they finally got word on Rose.

It was an odd sensation when the doctor that accompanied Dr. Harper out, was none other than Martha Jones. Maybe this was a good sign. It had to be, yeah? I parallel version of a former companion treating Rose? It must mean _something._

"Everyone, this is Dr. Martha Milligan," Owen introduced. "Dr. Milligan, this is Mr. and Mrs. Tyler, Rose's parents, her little brother, Tony, their close family friend, Jake Simmonds, and Rose's husband, Dr. John Smith."

The Doctor took a moment to process her new last name. So she had gone through with the wedding in this universe? Good on her.

Martha smiled kindly at the family. "It's very nice to meet you all, though I wish it was under better circumstances."

"That's all well and good, but I need to know about my wife now," the Doctor stated firmly.

"Of course. Let's take this to private waiting area."

They all agreed as Jackie asked Jake to wait in the hall with Tony while they spoke to the doctors.

* * *

After leading them to a private room, Dr. Milligan began to explain. "I'm not going to sugar coat this, it was touch and go at first. Mrs. Smith's heart did stop while en route to the hospital. The medics were able to restart it though before arrival, but her heartbeat remained unsteady for some time.

Jackie covered her mouth, chocking back sobs.

"Go on," the Doctor instructed through clenched teeth.

"She did receive some minor injuries, two broken ribs and multiple lacerations to her face and torso."

"Is that it?" Pete asked skeptically.

Owen spoke up, "I'm sorry, Director, but no. Rose has severe head trauma from the impact of going through the windshield."

Dr. Milligan looked directly at the Doctor. "The scans showed that your wife has intracranial haemorrhaging. Now we purposefully keep patients with traumatic brain injuries in a comatose state in order to calm their systems and allow the brain time to heal itself while the swelling subsides. Then we slowly wean them off it. Now-"

"Then what?" Jackie interrupted before the Doctor even could. "Then what happens? She'll just wake up and be better?"

"Unfortunately, we won't know the extent of any damage until we wake her. I wish I had a specific answer for you. But there are too many variables."

The Doctor began running his hands through his hair. "How long? How long will you keep her under?"

"We'll continue to scan her as often as possible. Days would be a nice thought, but we're looking more at weeks. Perhaps even a couple of months."

He did not like that answer. He set his sights on Owen. "There's nothing at Torchwood that could speed this process along?"

Owen shook his head. "You know as well as I do, what a delicate thing the human brain is. We're going to have to give Rose time and let her heal on her own."

Oh, the irony. Give her time. Without another word, the Doctor bolted out of the room.

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**Please review! xoxo**


	3. Chapter Two

**A/N: Thank you so much to my followers, those who have favorited, and to those of you who have taken the time to review. I adore you all. **

**Trigger Warning: This chapter contains descriptions of Rose's injuries. Nothing graphic, but I wanted to warn you before hand.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That all goes to the BBC.**

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_"Without You_  
_The Hand Gropes_  
_The Ear Hears_  
_The Pulse Beats" - Without You, Rent._

* * *

"I hate this beach."

It was the first thing Rose had said in well over five minutes. Of course, it had been well over five minutes since the TARDIS had disappeared, taking the fully Time Lord Doctor and Donna back to their original universe. If he thought about it hard enough, he could tell down to the millisecond how long it had been. It took more concentration than he was used to, but he figured once he acclimated to the universe, and the way time flowed here, it shouldn't be so difficult.

He knew he should say something. She was waiting for him to say something. But what? Should he apologise? Declare his love once more? List every single adventure they had ever been on to prove to her that he really was the Doctor? No. Somehow those weren't conversations he wanted to have on bloody Bad Wolf Bay. Bloody freezing Bad Wolf Bay. Blimey was Norway _always _this cold? Ugh. Human bodies are so weak.

"Definitely not the ideal beach," he finally spouted.

She gave a bitter chuckle and continued to stare at the square imprint in the sand. The imprint from the now vanished TARDIS. "The next beach I go to better have sun and lots of it. I want to be able to lie back in my bikini and get a tan, all while drinking some fruity alcoholic beverage with a mini brolly sticking out of the top."

He squeezed her hand. "I think that can be arranged."

Rose finally turned her gaze towards him. "Yeah?"

"Oh, yes."

"How you gonna do that, hmm?" She gave a tongue in teeth grin. "You've got no money."

This he could do. Playful banter instead of talking about the real issues at hand? He was an old pro at that. "Ah, but that's why I have you, Rose Tyler. I'll be a kept man now. After all, you are the Vitex heiress, correct?"

"So all you want me for is my money?" she asked teasingly.

"Obviously. How else am I going to get to Hawaii?... Wait." The Doctor paused, a concerned look clouding his face. "They do have a Hawaii here, right?"

"They do. It's not a part of the States though. It's its own country. Still a huge tourist destination. Oh! And it's made up of ten islands, not eight."

"Huh. Well, that's going to take some getting used to."

"What?"

"New history to learn."

"It was...It was difficult for me at first. But Mickey helped. And I'll help you."

He smiled at her. "Yeah?"

"Yes," she answered assuredly.

"There's a lot for us to talk about," he finally admitted.

"There is," she agreed. "But we have time."

"Oi! You two!" Jackie called out. "I phoned Pete and the zeppelin won't be here till tomorrow morning. I already phoned to have a car come pick us up on the main road, so get moving! It'll take us to that little inn we stayed at last time."

"Time," the Doctor sighed.

"Stuck on the slow path," Rose chimed in.

He bent forward and placed a gentle kiss on her cheek. "But stuck with you, Rose Tyler? That's not so bad. Not so bad at all, actually."

She leaned her head on his shoulder. "We're going to be okay, Doctor."

* * *

And they were okay, the Doctor thought to himself. They were better than okay. It was a rough couple of months after they returned to London from Norway, but they got through it. Together. He missed the TARDIS desperately, but with Rose's help, it was manageable. It helped that he had had a spare sonic in his pocket, plus some psychic paper. Rose still had his original, from when she had borrowed it fateful day in their original universe. With those small comforts and Rose's love and support, he was, for the most part, a fully functioning "human" member of society.

He even had a job! A proper job. Two jobs, counting his apparent title as Special Consultant to Torchwood. He didn't count it though. The only reason he even agreed to do that was so he could spend more time with Rose. She had insisted at keeping her job there and had originally wanted him to take on a full time position as well, but he just couldn't bring himself to do it. Thankfully, after explaining his feelings on the matter, Rose suggested the "part-time" position. She was good like that. Instead, the Doctor found himself as a physics professor at a local, and well renowned, university. It was a job he enjoyed immensely.

Things were going so well for them. The Doctor and Rose were married now and had just decided to start trying to have children. Of course the universe had to throw a wrench in their lives. Hearing the sound of footsteps approaching, he voiced his next thoughts aloud.

"It's not fair."

Jake took a seat next to him and immediately responded, "No, it is not."

"This wasn't supposed to happen."

"Funny, Rose once told me the same exact thing."

The Doctor's hard exterior softened at the sound of his wife's name. "When?"

"Right after she came back from Norway. The first time," he clarified. "It was about a week after they returned and Rose decided to go for a walk. Cut to three hours later and she still hadn't returned and wasn't answering her mobile. I'm sure you can just imagine the panic Jackie was in." Jake gave a laugh at the memory. "When I got there Jackie was demanding Pete get the whole of Torchwood out looking for her."

"What happened?"

"Well, I texted her. Told her that she had everybody worried and to at least let someone know she was okay. She responded a minute or so later, confirming she was fine, she just needed some space. Another minute later she texted me her location and said I could come, but begged me not to tell anyone else. Which, at the time, I found a bit odd. Rose and I hadn't spent any time alone, only with Mickey or the rest of the family. But I figured she just needed a friend and agreed."

"Where was she?"

"The roof of a counsel estate building in Peckham."

"Ah." The Doctor sighed and looked up at the sky. The similarities weren't lost on the Doctor. She had run away to a rooftop and so had he. Course, he was on the hospital roof, but still.

"That's how I thought to look up here for you," Jake confirmed.

"I just needed space," the Doctor echoed Rose's once used term. "So what happened when you found her?"

"Just sat with her for the most part. She didn't even acknowledge my existence at first, until she finally told me how 'none of this was supposed to happen.' She told me how she had promised you forever and now she couldn't keep her promise. I didn't know what to say, just told her that I had felt the same after Rickey had died. We stayed up on that roof for another hour or so before I finally convinced her to head back to the mansion. She apologised for disappearing on everybody. Said she just needed to be alone for awhile and that was proving difficult between her parent's and Mickey hovering over her constantly."

He nodded. "Rose told me that they had been concerned about her for a long time."

"Oh yeah. It only got worse as Jackie's pregnancy continued and her hormones went haywire. The Tyler Mansion was a bloody madhouse during those nine months."

"I can imagine."

"That's when Rose and I started hanging out regularly, just the two of us."

"Thank you, Jake."

"For what?"

"Being there."

Jake sniffed a few times before saying, "That Dr. Milligan and Owen said you could go in and see Rose soon. That's why I decided to track ya down."

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "You mean Jackie didn't send you out to find me?"

"Nope. She said to let you be for awhile."

"That woman never ceases to surprise me. Did they fill you in on Rose's prognosis?"

"They did. Rose is a tough biscuit though. She'll be fine."

"Come on." He stood and scrubbed his hand down his face. "I need to see my wife."

* * *

The Doctor hurried his gait down the hall of Hope Hospital as he caught sight of Jackie pacing at the other end. She stopped when the Doctor was within reaching distance and immediately pulled him in for a hug. There was a time when being embraced by Jackie Tyler would make him cringe, but not now. Now he needed it. His body curled into hers and a memory danced across his mind of being hugged my his own mother when he was a very little Time Lord.

Jackie pulled back and swiped at her eyes. "Any minute now, they said we could go see her." She held up a bag. "One of the nurse's brought this out. It's her things... The stuff she had on her during..."

The Doctor nodded. She didn't need to finish. He looked in the bag and right on top was a smaller plastic bag with her jewelry inside. There wasn't much, just a charm necklace that Tony had picked out for her on her last birthday and her wedding ring. The sound of a door opening caused him to look up.

"You can see her now," Dr. Owen Harper announced, his tone serious. "You might not want to let Tony see her just yet," he added quietly to Jackie and Pete, nodding to where the lad was flipping through a book one of the nurses had brought him.

Without being asked, Jake spoke up, "Hey, little man! Why don't you and I go see if this place has any ice cream, yeah?"

Tony looked towards his parents for permission. When they both nodded, he agreed, but lacked the enthusiasm he would normally have.

"Ready?" Owen asked when the pair had rounded the corner.

The Doctor clutched the bag of Rose's belongings like a lifeline. Was he ready? Absolutely. The need to see Rose was overwhelming. But he was also scared. Petrified, really. Cause once he saw her, that was it. There would be no going back. Right now, the last image he has of her in his mind was of her that morning, brushing her hair. Healthy and beautiful, like always. He could still pretend that she would pop her head out of the doorway and confirm to him that this had just been some sort of cruel joke, or he could wake up and find that all this had been was a nightmare. But it wasn't. This was real life. He knew it was.

He was afraid of breaking down.

The Doctor looked at his wife's parents. "Do you... I mean to say... Could I..."

Understanding filled Pete's eyes and he gripped Jackie's arm gently. "Jacks, why don't we give the Doctor a moment alone with Rose first."

Jackie looked unconvinced. The mother in her was screaming out that she needed to see her daughter this instant. At the same time, she was filled with motherly concern for the Doctor as well. Would he be able to handle it on his own? She stepped forward and placed her hand on his cheek. "Are you sure, sweetheart?"

"I need to," he told her gently.

"Alright then. We'll be right outside the door if you need us."

The Doctor nodded before cautiously following Owen into Rose's room.

"Remember," the other doctor added. "She's not going to look like you remember. She's pretty banged up." He stopped outside the curtain that enclosed Rose's bed. "I'll go wait with Director and Mrs. Tyler."

When he heard the door behind him close, the Doctor carefully moved aside the curtain. There were no words to describe how he felt when he saw her. Never had she looked so... broken. So fragile. He stepped closer to her bed and cataloged the injuries marring her beautiful face.

Her entire forehead was bruised, along with portions of her upper cheeks. The was a large gash trailing from the middle of her forehead, down across the right temple, and towards her lips. There were others. Seven on her face alone. He didn't even want to start counting the ones on her arms. He took a moment to thank whatever deity above that might hear him that there thankfully would be no scarring. Thanks to the advanced equipment at Torchwood and his sonic screwdriver, those injuries would be healed much faster than the ones inside her head.

He placed the bag of her belongings on her bedside table and sat in the unoccupied chair near her head. Not sure of what to do or say, his eyes trailed down her body and landed on her left hand, facing palm up, as if inviting him to take hold. He fitted his hand in hers and thought about the first time he grabbed it, oh, such a long time ago. He bent forward. "Run," he whispered in her ear, before leaning back, hoping to see some sort of recognition that she heard him.

Nothing.

He squeezed her hand. "Please, Rose. Please. You have to be okay. I promise, if you're okay when the doctors wake you up, then I will not be mad at you about you not wearing your seatbelt. It won't even matter anymore, because you'll be right as rain. I need you to be okay, Rose. I can't do this without you. Rubbish without you by my side, I am. You know that. You're always saying so." He meant to give a chuckle, but it came out as a strangled sob. "If there is one thing I believe in, Rose. It's you. So be okay, yeah? For me. Please." With that he slipped her wedding ring out of the bag, and placed it back on her ring finger where it belonged.

* * *

Hours went by. Jackie and Pete both finally joined the Doctor, who found himself in another Jackie Tyler embrace as the woman broke down at the sight of her daughter. Not that he blamed her, but this was getting to be much for one day. Hell, had it only been one day? Jake came in eventually as well, though Tony, much to his displeasure, was still not allowed. After seeing for themselves how gruesome Rose's injuries were, Pete and Jackie both felt that it was in the boy's best interest not to see his sister like that.

At some point the Doctor was alone once more. He vaguely recalled his in-laws mentioning something about getting Tony home, and Jake got called into Torchwood. Thankfully nothing serious was happening, but with Rose indisposed and Pete needing to be with his family, it meant there would be more responsibilities on Jake's plate for the next couple of days.

The sound of someone clearing their throat brought the Doctor out of his thoughts.

"I'm sorry, Dr. Smith, but visiting hours are over now," a female voice told him.

Oh. It was Martha Milligan nee Jones. Or at least he assumed she used to be a Jones.

"I'm not leaving her," he said, his eyes never leaving his wife.

She nodded slightly and took a seat in the empty chair next to his. "Dr. Smith, I understand your reluctance, really I do, but you need to go home. Get some sleep, eat a proper meal, shower. You can come back tomorrow morning. Visiting hours begin once more at eight AM."

"Sorry, you must not have heard me properly. I am not leaving."

"My hearing is just fine," she told him firmly, but not unkindly. "She'll be well cared throughout the night, Dr. Smith. I promise."

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He hated being called Dr. Smith. He understood the reason for a proper human name. Truly, he did. But it didn't mean he liked it. Rose never called him anything but Doctor. Even during their wedding vows, she refused to call him John. The look on the officiate's face was priceless.

"You say you understand, but you don't. You couldn't possibly." He shrugged. "It's not your fault, but it's the truth. She is my everything. She is literally all I have. She's my Rose. How could I just leave her?"

Martha Milligan felt chills at this man's words. The way he felt about his wife... the passion he used when speaking of her... She suddenly wished her shift was over so she could go home to her husband. The need for his comfort was becoming overwhelming. She blinked back tears as she answered.

"I'm so sorry. I don't make the rules though. And think about it this way, if I let you stay, what do I do when some other distraught husband or wife asks to stay by their spouse's side? If I bend the rules for you, I have to bend them for everyone and risk my job in the process."

"She shouldn't be alone," the Doctor murmured.

"She won't be," Pete responded as he walked in the room, followed by an older looking woman.

He looked up in surprise. "I thought you'd gone home?"

"I did, but now I'm back. Doctor, Dr. Milligan," he gestured to the woman on his right, "this is Eloise. She's one of the private nurses I've hired to stay with my daughter throughout the night. And don't look so concerned, Dr. Milligan, it's already been arranged by the hospital."

There was something familiar about the woman that the Doctor couldn't place, but for some reason, he instantly trusted her. As if sensing his thoughts, she stepped forward and gave him a kind smile. "Now, don't you worry, dear. I'll take good care of her. I promise."

The Doctor nodded and turned to his father-in-law. "Thank you."

* * *

Before they knew it, it was the first Sunday in January. New Year's had come and gone, though nobody in the Tyler clan felt like celebrating. The Doctor, did spend the night at the Tyler Mansion, like he had many nights while Rose was still in her medically induced coma. It wasn't ideal, but neither was his and Rose's empty flat. The whole place felt wrong without her. And it soothed Jackie's worried mind when he stayed with them, that way she could see for herself that he ate and bathed properly. It was only for the nights anyway.

The Doctor spent all day, every day, by his wife's side. He talked to her constantly, recounted old adventures, and such. He also read to her often. The Hope Hospital staff was quickly charmed by the devoted husband and practically waited on him hand and foot. Jackie rolled her eyes when she saw one of the orderlies bringing him a cuppa and his favourite biscuits.

He also spent some time getting to know the two private nurses that Pete had hired to watch over Rose at night. Eloise was a kind old woman in her mid sixties. The Doctor still couldn't place where he knew her from, but figured that he must have met her at some point in the other universe. Amelia Pond, or as she preferred to be called, Amy, was the other night nurse. She was a fiery Scottish ginger, a few years younger than Rose. The Doctor's first impression was that she was a bit rough around the edges and he wasn't sure how he felt about her being with Rose all night. She was forever calling him Raggedy Man as his appearance tended to be a bit disheveled by the time she would arrive. His opinion changed though when one evening she entered the room carrying a few gossip rags in her hands and the Doctor made a passing comment about how Rose loved reading those, before he left. The next day several staff members told him how Amy spent most of the night reading her gossip rags aloud to Rose.

Martha Milligan was someone else the Doctor got to know a bit better during his time at the hospital. She was a bit different than the Martha he knew before, but this Martha had been dealt a different life than the other. He learned that both her parents (who had remained married in this world) were killed during the Cyberman attacks, leaving her and her brother, Gio (not Leo) as orphans (apparently her sister, Tish, never existed). She eventually met her husband a few years later while working with Doctors Without Borders. He also learned that Martha was three months pregnant with their first child.

Various emotions swirled through the Doctor when she delivered that news. Part of him was happy for her. Despite her not being _his _Martha, she was still _a_ Martha, and he was incredibly proud. At the same time, he was completely jealous. He and Rose had just decided to start a family. Who knew when those plans could resume?

Here they were now though, the start of a new year. Scans for Rose showed that she was improving, but would need to remain in her comatose state for another two weeks, at least. That news was rough. School was resuming again and the Doctor had to make arrangements with the university for a sub to take over his classes until he could return. Thankfully, his superiors supported him completely and told him to take off as much time as needed.

Things were going a bit rougher for Tony, as the boy was expected to return to school the following day. The past week had been extremely hard on both his mother and his nanny, Mrs. Rhodes. Tony was acting completely out of character, by being purposefully rude and throwing tantrums over the slightest things. Pete tried having a stern talk with his son, but it was difficult when his presence at Torchwood was required constantly.

They had been able to keep Rose's accident quiet for a few days, but eventually the media caught wind. Thankfully, while she was the Vitex heiress, Rose wasn't that well known in this universe. She led a very private life, and after the initial drama and intrigue over her sudden presence wore off, she was hardly ever news worthy. In fact, Rose was rarely recognised in public. After news of the accident made itself known, Pete immediately released a statement asking for privacy for Rose and their family as she recovered from her trying ordeal. The Doctor knew how humans were though, and doubted the other man's pleas would work. Much to his surprise, he was wrong. The general public was kind enough to leave them well enough alone. Despite it all though, Pete had assigned a Torchwood agent to be outside of Rose's hospital room, at all times.

So while Pete was busy handling those things, Jackie was left to deal with their irate son.

* * *

The Doctor walked into the Tyler Mansion and was met with the sound of his young brother-in-law screaming, "No! I won't go! You can't make me!"

"I can and I will, Anthony Alan Tyler!" he heard Jackie yell back before seeing her stomp down the stairs to greet him.

"Oh. Hello there, sweetheart," she said tiredly. "Come along. There's some leftover pasta waiting for you."

"Everything alright?" the Doctor asked.

Jackie sighed and blinked back tears. "I don't know what's going on with him," she admitted openly. "He's always been such a good boy, but ever since Rose's accident..."

"He's been misbehaving."

"Basically. I know how hard this has been for him, so I've tried to make sure he's still getting the attention he deserves, but nothing I do seems to work."

"What was he shouting about when I arrived?"

"School starts up again tomorrow. He's saying that he won't go. Absolutely refuses. Which makes no sense! He loves school. And I figured he would want to go back, get out of this dreary place."

The Doctor had a feeling that he knew just what was wrong with Tony. "Have you considered letting him go see Rose yet?"

Jackie shook her head. "No. I don't want him seeing her like that. He doesn't need to see her again until she's awake and we know she's alright."

"Jackie, I'm going to say something honestly, so please don't slap me." She smirked, but remained quiet so he continued, "I think you're wrong. I think he does need to see her. She's looking a lot better than she had at first. You know that, you saw her yesterday. Owen and I have been treating the wounds on her face. They're still there, but not as visible. And the bruising is totally gone. Tony has always been allowed to see Rose whenever she's been injured. Rose herself once told me that she always let him visit so that he had the reassurance that she was still there. He needs that reassurance, Jackie."

"He's right, Jacks. You know he's right," Pete told his wife as he followed them into the kitchen.

Jackie lightly hit his arm. "Oh, you. Why are you always sneaking up on people, hmm? And I know he's right. It doesn't make it any easier though."

"Why don't I go talk to Tony? See if I can get him to calm down a bit," the Doctor offered, sensing his in-laws needed a moment alone.

Pete smiled gratefully. "That would be great, Doctor, and when you're done meet me in my office."

"What for?"

"Sato was finally able to find a clear CCTV video of Rose's accident."

The Doctor felt his pulse begin to race at the thought. They could finally see why Rose had been unbuckled. The real question was though, did he want to know? Pushing those thoughts far from his mind, he turned and headed towards Tony's room. Right now, Rose's little brother was in distress, and he was going to do the best he could to make things better for lad.

* * *

The Doctor entered the Tony's room and saw his small form sprawled across his bed, his chest heaving with sobs. Without a word, the Doctor instantly scooped the boy up and rocked him against his chest. Tears fell from his own eyes as he held the boy tightly, whispering reassurances in his ear.

"I want Rose," Tony cried when he had somewhat calmed.

"I know. I know you do. So do I," the Doctor admitted.

"But you get to see her everyday. No one will let me see her! What if she misses me! What if she needs me to get better. She always says I make her better when I go visit and Mummy won't believe me!"

"Ssshhh. I believe you, Tony, and so does your mum. That's why she just now agreed for you to go see her."

The little boy instantly perked up. "Now?"

"No, not tonight. It's too late now. Visiting hours are over. But I promise, as soon as you get out of school tomorrow, you can head straight to the hospital to visit. Alright?"

He nodded, but a pout remained on his face. "I wish I could go see her tonight."

"I wish that too, but it's late. You have to be up early for school in the morning."

"Do I hafta?"

"What would Rose tell you if she was here?"

"To go to school and learn lots so I can come home and tell her all about it," Tony replied mimicking his older sister's voice.

The Doctor gave a light laugh. "Right you are, Tony Tyler. Now budge up, you need to go to bed. I'll stay with you till you're asleep, yeah?"

A guilty expression crossed the boys face. "Okay. But first, can I go so sorry to Mummy for yelling at her? Rose would be sad if she knew I didn't say sorry."

"I think that's a brilliant plan. Rose would be very proud of you."

Tony stood and grabbed the Doctor's hand. "I miss her."

The Doctor pulled his brother-in-law in for another hug. "I miss her too."

"D-Doctor?"

"Yes, Tony?"

"The snow melted."

"I know. It melted a few days ago."

"Rose can't keep her promise now."

The Doctor ruffled Tony's hair. "Hey now, it's not like it will never snow again. Besides, if Rose has to fly you two to the North Pole just so she can keep her promise, she will."

Tony nodded, lifting his chin in true Tyler stubbornness. "Yeah, bet she would... I love you, Doctor."

"I love you too, Tony."

As the Doctor led Tony to his mother he spared a glance out one of the windows. Outside he saw the stars shining bright in the crisp winter air._ 'I love you, Rose,' _he whispered in his mind.

* * *

**Please review! xoxo**


	4. Chapter Three

**A/N: Thank you so much to my followers, to everyone who has favorited this story, and to everyone who has taken the time to review. I adore you all. So about this chapter... I'm sorry. I'm so sorry... and... uh... Merry Christmas! *smiles nervously***

**Note: I've gone ahead and bumped up the rating of this story. I probably should have had it that way from the start. Sorry about that!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That all goes to the BBC. *A couple lines below are borrowed from the movie The Vow. Credit for those lines belong to their respective writers.***

* * *

After escorting Tony downstairs to apologise to his mum for his poor behaviour, the Doctor led the boy back to his room and stayed until he had finally nodded off to dreamland. It was comforting, lying there with Tony. It amazed the Doctor how much the young lad was like his older sister, in both looks and personality. While losing Rose that awful day at Canary Wharf qualified as one of the worst days of his life, he could no longer regret it. If he hadn't, the two of them wouldn't be here now living their one life together and young Anthony Tyler wouldn't exist.

It was no secret that, besides Rose, Tony was the Doctor's favourite person. From the moment they'd been introduced, they were best mates. A smile graced his face as he thought back to the first time he met him...

* * *

It had been a long zeppelin ride, a _very _long ride, and the Doctor was itching to run out of the, what he found, small and confining transport. When the zeppelin landed at the Tyler Estate, the Doctor was shocked to find out that the mansion had been completely rebuilt and was very different structure than what he remembered.

"Most of it was destroyed during the Cyberman Attacks," Rose provided, guessing his thoughts. "Instead of just rebuilding what he had before, Dad completely redesigned the place. Didn't want any reminders I guess." Speaking of her parallel father, Rose blushed when she noticed her parents locked in a passionate embrace right in the front lawn.

"Are they always so... enthusiastic?" the Doctor asked, directing his gaze anywhere but the snogging couple.

She rolled her eyes. "Yep. Like a couple of teenagers, they are. It can be really embarrassing at times, but it's nice that they love each other so much."

"Good for them," he commented so quietly, Rose wasn't sure she heard correctly.

"Mummy!" a little boy's voice called out, breaking the older couple apart.

"Oh, my sweet little boy," Jackie cooed throwing her arms around her son pulling him in for a tight hug and peppering kisses across his face.

After wiggling out of his mum's embrace, Tony made a beeline for his sister. "Wose! You came back!"

Rose picked her three year old brother up and swung him around in circles. "Course I came back. Knew I'd miss ya too much to leave."

The Doctor felt a pang of guilt at Rose's admission knowing, truthfully, had he not been created, that it was most likely she would not have returned. Noticing that the little boy had stopped speaking to his sister, but was instead staring at him, the Doctor put on his most charming grin and waved. "Hello."

"Tony, someone came home with me and I think you'll be very excited to meet him," Rose whispered in her brother's ear.

"Who?" he whispered back.

"This is the Doctor."

Tony's eyes grew wide. "Weally, weally the Doctow?"

"Really."

"Hello there, Anthony Tyler," the human Doctor greeted.

The little boy looked at him skeptically, as if sizing him up. "Where's the TAWDIS?"

He smiled sadly. "I had to leave Her back in the other universe, so I could stay here with your sister."

"But that's youw home! Whewe will you live?" Tony asked, clearly distressed by the thought of the Doctor not having his beloved blue box.

"He's going to live with me, sweetheart," Rose explained in a soothing manner, setting him back on his feet.

"Won't you miss Hew?"

The Doctor got down on his knees to be eye level with the boy. "Very much so. But, there's someone who's going to take care of Her so I know She's in good hands. Besides, it's worth it getting to be here with Rose and getting to meet you."

Nodding his head, Tony took the Doctor's hand. "You can play with my TAWDIS if you get sad."

He turned his head to Rose for an explanation.

"Come on," she said. "It's in the backyard." Telling their parents where they were going, Rose lead them around the house. There, off to the left was a large tree, housing a moderate in size blue tree-house. A TARDIS blue tree-house.

"It's biggew on the outside," Tony said seriously.

"I can see that." The Doctor chuckled. "That is brilliant."

Rose smiled proudly. "I had it built for him before I started jumping. He loves hearing stories of our adventures, so I thought this would be nice for him to play with while I was gone."

"Well, come on then! I want to go inside!"

Tony tugged on his arm. "I need help."

"He's still to little to climb the ladder by himself," Rose informed him.

"No problem." He turned around and got down on one knee. "Hop on, Tony Tyler. You can ride on my back."

After spending hours playing in the miniature control room (including falling to the floor every time the Doctor "landed"), Rose eventually ventured into the main house, bringing back sandwiches and crisps for them to eat in the miniature galley. They stayed in Tony's TARDIS so long, the three year old ended up falling asleep on the bottom bunk of the little bed set Rose's had placed in one of the "rooms." Off to the side, Rose and the Doctor were curled up in a nearby hammock.

"Hammocks and bunk-beds," the Doctor commented. "Bloody brilliant idea. Should of thought of it sooner."

Rose giggled and nestled her head on his shoulder. "Thought you might like it."

"Like it? I love it!"

There was so much they needed to talk about. Things neither wanted to share, but knew that had to. But for now... For now they were both content to snuggle together in a small hammock, in tree-house version of the TARDIS, that actually appeared bigger on the outside...

* * *

With a sigh, the Doctor slipped out of Tony's bed and began to make his way to his father-in-law's office. He felt extremely uneasy as he took the necessary steps towards his destination. Before going to check on Tony, he'd been informed that Torchwood's top computar expert, Toshiko Sato, had finally found a clear CCTV video of Rose's accident.

The conflicting emotions he felt tumbling inside him were enough to make his stomach roll, and he briefly wondered if he was going to start vomiting again like he did the day of Rose's accident. And hadn't that just been wizard? "Bloody stupid human biology," the Doctor muttered as he paused to take a few breaths.

When he finally felt like he wasn't going to retch all over Jackie's Persian rugs, he lightly rapped on the office door.

"Come in," Pete called out. The Doctor entered and found the man pouring himself some scotch. "Drink?" he offered.

"No, ta," the Doctor mumbled.

Pete nodded and took a sip of his drink before settling himself in the chair behind his desk. "Take a seat, Doctor."

He did as he was told and asked, "So you have the video?"

"I do."

"Are you going to play it for me?" he wondered aloud, curious as to why Pete was making no move to show the video.

"I'm not," Pete replied briefly, already aware that the Doctor was not going to react well to his answer.

"Excuse me? Why not?"

"Because, Doctor, I, myself, watched it and, with every fiber of my being, wish I could get that image out of my head. I am not going to allow it to mar your thoughts as well."

"I need to know what happened, Pete," the Doctor bit out, trying not to fall into the Oncoming Storm he felt brewing. "She is my wife, and I need to know why my wife, who is always so cautious about her seatbelt, wasn't wearing one. Let me see that video."

Pete stayed firm. "No. That is my final answer. I can tell you exactly why Rose was not wearing her seatbelt, but I will not let you see it."

"You do realise, I can easily hack into your files and see it for myself."

"You do realise that I have the means to keep it under deadlock seal for that specific reason. I'm not a fool, Doctor."

"She's my wife!" he yelled, standing to his feet.

"And she's my daughter!" his father-in-law responded with equal ferocity.

"Not your real one."

Pete stood and faced the Doctor head on. "Don't you dare. I may have rejected her the first time I met her, but that was years ago. I'd just lost my wife, and my world was in ruins. But things changed. It was difficult at times, but we grew to love and respect one another and now I can't even begin to imagine not having her in my life. So don't you dare say such things, Doctor. Rose Marion Tyler is my daughter."

The Doctor sunk back into his chair and covered his face. "I'm sorry," he said, his voice muffled by his hands. "I know you're her dad. I was just upset and being harsh on purpose."

"I understand," Pete told him, taking his own seat. "Believe me when I say, Doctor, it's not a pretty sight. Rose wouldn't want you to see it. If the roles were reversed, she wouldn't watch the video of you."

"You can't know that."

"I do actually. Rose told you about the universe where you were dead? The one that was all wrong?"

"Of course she did."

"Well, as I'm sure you know, she was working with UNIT while over there, and they tried persistently to get her to watch the video of you drowning. They thought if she watched it, she could provide some insight as to why you chose not to get out. Why you chose not to regenerate."

"And she refused," the Doctor finished, remembering the night Rose had woken from a bad dream a few nights after their return to Pete's World. When he went to wake her, she immediately threw her arms around him and started chanting that he was alive. It didn't take long for her to confess everything that had happened in that alternate timeline and when she was done, she gave him a thorough talk-down about never being so bloody stupid again.

"She told them it was pointless since everything was all wrong and you weren't meant to be dead," Pete continued, "and then went on to tell them all to stop being useless and to start helping her straighten everything out. She told me later that she ruffled quite a few feathers, but an old friend of your's who worked there applauded her and demanded everyone to do whatever she said."

He chuckled. "Probably the Brig. Rose told me she met him and they got on quite well." Sobering up, he asked, "What happened, Pete? Why was she unbuckled?"

Pete opened one of the drawers in his desk and pulled out a file. "When the car came to a stop at the light, the carton of milk fell off the seat next to her. Looking around to make sure no one was coming and that the light hadn't turned, Rose bent down to pick it up, but couldn't reach. Without looking, thus missing the lorry coming up behind her, she unbuckled. By the time she sat back up, the lorry was seconds away from impact. It happened so quickly, there was nothing she could have done."

"And the driver? Did you ever find anything on him?"

"Forty-seven year old male. Has a wife and two kids, two boys ages fifteen and eleven. No traces of alcohol in his system. According to his statement, he was exhausted from Christmas and fell asleep at the wheel. The CCTV backs up his story. I've made sure he'll no longer be a lorry driver, however, Torchwood had set up sufficient sums to make sure his family is cared for until he can find a new job."

The Doctor nodded, glad that Pete Tyler could be such a kind man towards the driver's family. He'd like to think he would have done the same in Pete's position, but there was no guarantee. "Thank you for telling me." He cleared his throat. "And for not letting me watch the video."

"You're welcome, Doctor."

* * *

"And then Mrs. Anderson, told me I wasn't aloud to carry vinegar around in my pocket, even though I told her it was for my own protection as well as the schools! I'm pretty sure Mr. Freemont, from down the hall is a Slitheen."

The Doctor chuckled as Tony sat on the edge of Rose's hospital bed, regaling her unconscious form with stories from his first day back at school. The young lad had been weary at first, frightened mostly by the breathing tube placed in Rose's mouth, but once the Doctor and Jackie explained what it was for, he happily sat down and began talking to his big sister as if she was wide awake. It was a refreshing change of pace in the dull hospital and already, several nurses had come in, doting on the little boy and commenting about what a sweet brother he was.

Tony stopped his story, when he saw his mother return with a cuppa for the Doctor, knowing she would disapprove if she learned what he had taken to school with him.

"Now then, young man, say goodbye to your sister. You still have homework to do and I need to get home to start tea. We'll discuss you taking vinegar to school and accusing a teacher of being an alien when your father gets home." She saw her son's shoulder's slump in defeat. "Did you honestly think your school wouldn't call me?"

He shrugged and used the smile he had picked up from the Doctor. "I hoped they wouldn't."

"Such cheek. Say your goodbyes."

"Bye, Rose. I'll come back and see you soon." He kissed her cheek. "I love you." Scooting off the bed, he crawled into his brother-in-law's lap. "Bye, Doctor. Will I see you tonight?"

"Not sure about tonight, but how about I drop you off at school tomorrow on my way here?" the Doctor supplied.

"Okay!"

* * *

And so time went on. Three and a half weeks came and went as Rose stayed in her suspended sleep, recovering from the trauma she endured. The days passed in routine as the Doctor spent every available visiting hour at Rose's bedside in the hospital. He continued to spend most nights at the Tyler mansion, though a few times he did venture to his and Rose's flat. He usually found the place to empty without her presence though, and would end up taking long midnight strolls to clear his head. Jackie and Pete also spent a good amount of their time with their daughter, as well as Tony who would come after school, and Jake who would come on his breaks from Torchwood.

Except for a few minor scars, that the Doctor was convinced would heal completely with continued treatment from the sonic screwdriver, Rose seemed to be completely healed on the outside. It was just her mind that had yet to fully heal. When the day came that Dr. Harper and Dr. Milligan told him they would be waking Rose the next morning, he thought he might cry right then and there. Instead, he excused himself to the en suite and flipped on the tap to drown out the sound of his tears of joy. Finally, finally, Rose was going to wake up.

The state she would be in however was still undetermined. They weren't worried about her suffering from muscular atrophy, thanks to some advanced medical equipment Torchwood had, they were more worried about how exactly her brain had suffered from the damage it had received. Fearful of the sate she would be in, and not wanting to overwhelm her, the decision was made that the only people who would be present in the room upon her waking, would be both Dr. Harper and Dr. Milligan, along with the Doctor himself. Jackie hadn't been happy about the news, wanting to see her daughter right away, but agreed in the long run that it would probably be best. She insisted, however, that she and Pete would be right outside, waiting in the hall and stayed firm in her decision, despite being told that with the combination of medicines they'd given her it would be hours before she was fully awake.

* * *

The Doctor paced nervously outside of the hospital room, working up the courage to enter. Owen had texted him a few hours earlier (before visiting hours), informing him that they were going to start the process of waking Rose. Despite the hour, he quickly threw on clothes, woke his in-laws, and made his way there. Instead of immediately heading to her room, he waited in the hall, praying to whatever deity that might hear him that Rose would be alright.

The Doctor stopped his movement when he heard someone clear their throat. He turned and saw Martha Milligan standing in the doorway, giving him a kind smile. "She's starting to show signs of waking. It's still a bit early for visiting hours, but I think just this once we can make an exception."

The Doctor didn't respond, but instead rushed passed her and made his way to his wife's side, clasping her hand.

"Don't crowd her," Owen warned. "She's going to be a bit groggy, so let's give her some space." He took a step back when the Doctor shot him a warning look.

They all watched as Rose slowly opened her eyes and took in her surroundings. When she settled on the sight of the Doctor, he sighed in relief. "Hey there." He blinked back tears at the sight of her eyes. God how he missed those brown orbs with their flecks of gold. "It is so good to see you."

She frowned in confusion and began looking around. "Wh-wha..."

Seeing her struggle, Owen stepped forward and provided her with answers. "Rose, it's okay. You're in the hospital. Hope Hospital to be exact. You were in a car accident on Boxing Day. You hit your head," he simplified, "but you're okay. We've just kept you asleep for awhile."

"How are you feeling?" the Doctor asked softly, noticing the way she kept crinkling her brow.

"My head hurts," she replied, her voice raspy from disuse.

Martha smiled kindly as she stood next to Owen. "That's perfectly normal, Rose. We can get you something for that."

Rose closed her eyes briefly, but opened them again with determination. "Sorry, what did you call me?"

"I called you Rose," she answered carefully, shooting a concerned look to her fellow physician.

The Doctor felt his pulse begin to race with Rose's next question.

"And that's... that's my name?"

"Yes," Owen told her seriously. "Rose, I need you to focus on me, can you do that?" She nodded and tried her best to keep her focus on him. "Good girl. Can you tell me your mum's name?" She thought for a moment and shook her head. "What about your dad? Maybe your little brother?" Rose shook her head and panic began to set it. "Calm down Rose," he soothed. "You're doing just fine. Do you see this man," he pointed to the Doctor, "can you tell me who he is?"

"Is he my doctor?" she asked innocently.

Straightening in his seat, the Doctor squeezed Rose's hand. "I am a doctor, Rose, but you know who I am right? Tell me you know me," he said, trying not to sound frantic.

She pulled her hand out of his. "You're a doctor."

He flexed his own hand, feeling as if all the air had been sucked out of the room. Rose rarely pulled her hand from his. Holding hands was their safety blanket. Composing his features he informed her gently, "I'm your husband."

She flinched away when he moved closer to her. "I don't remember," she cried, the sounding shattering the Doctor's one human heart.

* * *

**Please review! xoxo**


	5. Chapter Four

**A/N: Many thanks to my followers, to those who have favourited, and to those who have taken the time to review. You guys are the best and I sincerely apologise about the wait. **

**Warning: There is the tiniest bit that might be considered NSFW (but not really). I mean tiny. Blink and it's over. I don't usually write those types of scenes and this isn't exactly a story that calls for one. But yeah. The Doctor and Rose are married.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or anything related. That all goes to the BBC.**

* * *

It had been two and a half hours since Rose had woken up. It had been two and a half hours since they discovered that Rose had no recollection of who he was. Worse, she had no idea who _she _was. It had come as a low blow, and they were completely blind sided. They had expected there to be some memory loss or confusion surrounding the events leading up to her hospital stay, but for Rose to have zero memories whatsoever was absolutely frightening. Their memories meant the world to them. They were their link to their original universe. Their reminder of who they used to be and who they were now.

And they were gone.

After Rose's admission about not knowing who she was, Owen was forced to escort the Doctor out of the room. Under normal circumstances he would have fought back. How dare someone try to remove him from his wife's, his Rose's, side. But seeing how distressed his presence, and the discovery that he was her husband, was making her he left quickly and without fuss. Only to be met with the sight of his in-laws. Seeing the look of concern on Jackie's face was his breaking point. Folding himself into her arms, he sobbed, explaining what had happened in between gulps of air. When he was finished, the Doctor let Jackie do something that hadn't been done for him since he was very, very small. He let himself be mothered.

While Pete set off trying to find out exactly what was happening with his daughter, Jackie got herself and the Doctor situated on some chairs in a private waiting area and let him cry himself out. When the last shudder ran through him, to say he was embarrassed would be saying the least. But she wouldn't hear a word of his apologies. She told him that he had every right to break down. Especially after what had just happened.

"The way she looked at me," he admitted, "it was like I was her worst nightmare."

Jackie shook her head in denial. "She just woke up. She was confused. Give her time, it'll all be alright."

A few minutes later Pete walked in saying the Dr. Harper and Dr. Milligan were running some tests and would meet with them as soon as the procedures were finished. And so the waiting game began once more. That had been two hours ago. Now the Doctor, along with the Tylers, were sitting in Dr. Milligan's office waiting to hear what the physicians had to report.

All three heads snapped up as soon as they heard the office door open. In walked Owen Harper with a large file in hand, and a deadly serious expression plastered on his face.

He took a seat behind the desk and cleared his throat. "I asked to speak to you alone while Dr. Milligan sees to Rose."

"Tell me everything," the Doctor insisted, leaning forward in his chair.

"Long story short, she has amnesia," he said bluntly. "She has no recollection of who she is, or anything about her life. She can remember basic skills. Reading, writing, and whatnot. Though if you ask her what her favourite book or television show is, she can give you no answer."

Jackie began sniffing. "She really has no idea who she is? I thought stuff like that just happened on the telly."

"The type of amnesia she's suffering from is rare, but not wholly unheard of. In Rose's case, she seems to be dealing with a mixture of retrograde, post-traumatic, and dissociative amnesia. More specifically dissociative fugue." Owen pulled out various pamphlets from the file he had carried in and handed them to Pete. "Those will explain the different amnesia states, though Rose isn't necessarily suffering from one specific one. Brain injuries tend to be unique and differ with every patient."

The Doctor ran his hands through his hair and asked, "Have you treated this before? Treated with patients suffering from amnesia?"

"I have. I've dealt with all sorts of things with Torchwood. But like I said, every patient is different." He leaned back in the chair and folded his hands. "I'm going to be completely honest with you all, I've seen patients who have forgotten almost everything about their lives, and they are usually people who have had a rough go at life."

Pete frowned. "Are you insinuating that my daughter wanted to forget?"

"Not at all! I will say that, despite being very happy with her life now, Rose hasn't had the easiest life. Things have been hard. We all know that there are still things she refuses to discuss about her dimension hops. She would come to me with various injuries for me to treat without an explanation as to how she got them. Yes, Rose has a very happy and fulfilling life. Now. But she hasn't always. And maybe this is her mind's way of protecting itself. Let's not forget that while we were able to wake her today, Rose is still recovering from a very serious car accident."

"He's right." The Doctor sighed. "The mind is a delicate thing." He thought back to Rose's time as the Bad Wolf. While, she was one hundred percent human, there was no denying that Rose had been changed by her bonding with the TARDIS. After the Doctor had removed the Vortex energy from Rose, she had forgotten everything that had occurred since he had sent her home. Months later, the memories slowly came back until finally she admitted to him that she could remember everything. Well, almost everything. She could remember being the Bad Wolf and what she had done as the ominous entity, though she had no recollection of what she could _see_ as the Bad Wolf. And for that he was truly grateful. Perhaps this was the same thing. She had needed time to recover from all that had happened on Satellite Five before the memories came back. Now, maybe, her mind needed time while her body recovered from the trauma it had been through with the accident.

"Will she ever remember?" Jackie asked, trying her best to hold back the tears that were threatening to spill.

"I'm very hopeful that, given time, her memories will return. We'll have to proceed with caution though. By all means, we should encourage her to try and remember things, but we can't push too hard. There's also the subject of her past." Owen Harper was one of the few people privy to the information of who Rose and Jackie really were and where they came from. It was times like these he was glad he was. "We can't just spring on her that she's originally from a parallel universe and her real mum is now married to a parallel version of her father. On top of that, trying to explain the Doctor would be a whole other problem. I'm afraid the information might break her."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes. "You want us to lie to her?"

"Not exactly lie. Tell her as much of the truth as possible." He turned to Jackie. "Any stories you have with your first husband before he passed? Great. Tell her." Pete was next. "Telling her she works for Torchwood would be a hard thing to explain. Instead tell her she works for Vitex." It wasn't a far stretch. Many Torchwood employees who had... sensitive... jobs listed Vitex as their employers instead of Torchwood, for obvious safety reasons.

Jackie placed her hand on her son-in-law's knee. "And what about the Doctor?"

"Tell her the truth. Just leave out the aliens and time travel."

And leave out everything that made them the Doctor and Rose. At least it felt that way. The Doctor turned to Jackie and could see she was clearly struggling with the same thoughts he was. How could they leave out such important parts of her life? The things that made Rose... Rose.

"Thank you, Dr. Harper," Pete said, standing to his feet. "I'd like a moment with my family, if you don't mind."

Owen stood as well. "Sure thing. Feel free to use the office, I'm going to go check on Rose and Dr. Milligan."

When they were once again alone, Jackie let her tears fall. "What do we do?"

Pete turned to his son-in-law. "I'm inclined to follow Owen's advice, but I'm going to deter to you. Rose is your wife and you are far more knowledgeable of the mind's workings."

"I don't know. I hate the idea of lying to her, but Owen has valid concerns." The Doctor began alternating between tugging on his ear and rubbing the back of his neck. Both signs of stress and discomfort. "Just telling her I was her husband was enough to send her spinning."

"I say we tell her as much of the truth as possible," Jackie injected. "We can avoid giving any details unless she asks for them. After all, Dr. Harper himself said we shouldn't push too hard."

Placing his hand on the Doctor's shoulder, Pete asked, "Is that okay with you?"

"Nothing about this situation is okay with me," he answered truthfully.

* * *

They had been upset to learn that Rose didn't want to see them. In fact, she had become so distressed at the thought, both doctors had been forced to sedate her.

"We can try again in a few days. Let's just give her some space for the time being," Dr. Milligan had told them calmly.

Not being able to see Rose had been excruciating for the Doctor. He had spent every possible moment with her since she had first been admitted and not physically seeing her was torture. Little Tony was having a tough time as well. Having to tell their son that his big sister, whom he adored with every fiber of his being, had no recollection of who he was, was one of the absolute worst moments as parents for both Pete and Jackie.

Three days passed and Rose flat out refused to see the Doctor or her parents. Martha explained that Rose was very emotionally confused right now and was confident that she would eventually come around. In the meantime, she and Owen continued to subtly try and encourage her to meet with her family.

Just because he couldn't see Rose didn't mean that the Doctor still didn't spend every possible hour at the hospital. The need to be near her was too strong to resist. The nurses who knew of Rose's condition continued to dote on him, and tried not to complain too much when he got underfoot, though it was becoming more and more difficult as he became restless.

* * *

The Doctor paced the halls of Hope Hospital. Something he had done for three straight days. He just couldn't comprehend why Rose refused to see her family. Wouldn't she want to be surrounded by people who knew who she really was? Who loved her? If Rose were in her right mind she would feel absolutely horrible knowing that her actions were not only hurting him, but her parents, and most especially her brother. It would not be acceptable in her book. But Rose wasn't Rose right now. She was lost and confused and he just had to be patient with her. That's what Owen and Martha kept saying.

But what did they know? He couldn't deny the fact that they were brilliant physicians and had given Rose the best care possible, but she'd never be in this mess if he'd still had the TARDIS. Well, probably wouldn't. He was almost positive the equipment on his beloved Time Ship would have been able to heal her in a more timely matter. And as for the memory loss? He was almost positive that his fully Time Lord mind would have been able to right that in a snap. Almost positive.

He briefly wondered, if Rose didn't recover her memories, if perhaps he should somehow try to contact the other universe. No. That was foolish. The walls between universes were monitored regularly and there hadn't been so much as a blip since the moment the other Doctor, along with Donna and the TARDIS, had left.

He felt a familiar ache in his chest when he thought about his other self. An ache where his second heart should be. He knew Rose still thought of him. Still grieved for him and the losses she knew he was suffering from. It had been something they'd argued about quite a bit there in the beginning. His thoughts drifted back to that first night spent in Rose's tiny one bedroom flat. They had spent two days at her parents place, tiptoeing around each other and using little Tony as a buffer. But then they were finally alone...

* * *

They had ordered Chinese food and had just sat down to eat when Rose finally brought up what she'd been dying to ask. "Will he be alright?"

The Doctor didn't even have to guess who she was asking about. He finished chewing his kung pao chicken and took a sip of his orange flavoured Vitex. "Eventually," he answered as honestly as possible.

"What does that mean?"

"It means that eventually he'll be alright, but he probably won't be for awhile."

"He has Donna though."

He closed his eyes. No, no, his other self did not have Donna Noble by his side. He knew what would have happened to her after they left and he knew exactly what the fully Time Lord Doctor would do to prevent it. He opened his eyes. "I'm so sorry, Rose, but there's something I need to tell you." He went on to explain how the Meta-Crisis would have affected Donna's mind and how she would have had to have all of her memories of him and their time together erased.

"B-but that means he's all alone now," Rose said, pushing away her plate of food. Suddenly the thought of eating made her feel ill.

"For now," he conceded, "but he'll find someone eventually."

"You can't know that."

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Pretty sure I can seeing as he's me." When Rose didn't respond he looked up at her in shock. She was carefully avoiding eye contact and looking everywhere but his face. "You don't believe that. Do you?"

"I do," she whispered. "Of course I do."

"You trying to convince me or yourself?"

She finally looked him straight in the eye. "Oi! There's no need to be a prat, alright? Put yourself in my shoes, yeah? I spent years, _years_, trying to find you again. I made plans and arrangements cause I thought when I did, I would never see my family again. And I excepted that! Doesn't mean I was happy about it, but I knew I needed you more. And then, then I find you and before we even have a proper reunion you're getting shot by a fucking Dalek! And I thought you were going to regenerate and then you didn't, but we almost lost the TARDIS and Donna, but then they come back, but not alone, oh no! There you are. You. One hundred percent you, except you're human! And that's great, that's brilliant, but do you know how confusing that is!?"

"Rose," he tried to interrupt.

She stopped him. "No! I'm not finished. Because then I was taken back to the one place I hate more than anything. The place where I went through the _worst _day of my life. And that saying something, because I have had some pretty shite filled days. So there I am with two versions of the man I love and one of them, the completely alien one, refuses to say the words I waited for years to hear. And then he leaves without so much as a goodbye! But the human one? He says it all. And he tells me we can spend the rest of our lives together, because for him, there's no damn curse of the Time Lords nonsense. And I'm thrilled beyond thrilled. But you know what? I'm devastated as well. Because somewhere, in another universe, there is a version of the man I love and he doesn't have someone to love him back. Not in that way. And then... then I get told he no longer has his best friend with him. The most important woman in all of creation can't even remember him or she would literally die." She got up from her chair and moved to sit on his lap. She pressed her forehead against his, needing to feel close to him.

"Rose," he whispered once more.

"Imagine if the roles were reversed." She stroked his hair. "Imagine if somehow there ended up being two of me. One Time Lord. One human. Then imagine if I sent my Time Lord self off with you, in all your Time Lord glory, and we got to spend the rest of our many lives together. That would be brilliant, yeah? Except, one thing. Somewhere, in another universe, my human self was living out her life... alone.

He had never thought about it. Oh, his beautiful girl had gone through so much. She, once again, proved how much of a better person she was. He was nowhere close to deserving her. "You're right. It would be wonderful and awful."

She moved to rest her head on his shoulder. "I love you," she admitted quietly. "God, I love you so much, but I can't help but think of him sometimes. And I'm so sorry if that hurts you."

"It's okay. I understand. I can't promise it'll never upset me, but I'll try to always understand, Rose."

* * *

He had tried to be understanding and she tried to be sensitive to his feelings, but, despite their best efforts, they still argued. They shouted and screamed and threw things. But they never, never went to bed angry. Even if it meant staying up and calling in sick to work, they refused to go to bed upset with one another. They always worked it out, whether it took minutes or hours. As time moved forward and their relationship progressed, making up became the Doctor's favourite part of any argument (and he secretly suspected that Rose felt the same).

* * *

The feeling of someone sliding their arm through his brought him out of his musings. He looked to his left. "Martha!" he exclaimed. "I mean, Dr. Milligan."

She smiled kindly at him. "I told you that you're welcome to call me Martha. Now come along, Dr. Smith, you're taking me to lunch."

"I am?"

"Yep. Normally Tom and I would meet for lunch, but he's away at a conference in Paris, and the baby and I are craving pasta. There's a lovely little Italian place down the street, but the only downside is they don't do take out. And I don't fancy being a sad pregnant woman eating alone at a restaurant. Besides," she added, "you need to get out of here."

He looked reluctant. "But what if-"

"Rose is fine. I just checked on her a few minutes ago and she's sleeping. Come on," she began leading him to the lifts, "the hospital will page me if anything happens."

The Doctor couldn't help but grin. Stubborn, she was. Just like his Martha. "Alright, alright. You don't have to call me Dr. Smith, by the way. Just Doctor is fine, or John if you'd rather, though not many call me that."

"I've heard the Tylers call you Doctor, is that some nickname from your uni days?"

"Something like that. Started when I was younger actually and just sort of stuck. That's all Rose ever calls me. Never once has she called me John."

Martha pushed the button for the ground floor as they entered the lift. "Really? Well, I suppose I can call you Doctor, but I've yet to see you earn that name." She winked.

"Hey!" He looked affronted though, once again, he was pleased at her having a similar reaction as her parallel counterpart. "Just because I don't work at a hospital doesn't mean I'm not a real doctor. I'm just a doctor of science. Though I do have medical training as well."

* * *

Once they reached the restaurant, they were seated immediately and their orders were taken within minutes. The Doctor was impressed with their speedy service.

"Lots of hospital staff eat here," Martha explained. "So they're used to our crazy schedules and knowing we usually need to get back ASAP."

The food was wonderful. Martha had stuck with traditional spaghetti with meatballs, while the Doctor ordered the chicken picatta, one of Rose's favourite dishes. Tasting the well prepared chicken and the lemony pasta, the Doctor vowed to take Rose here as soon as he was able.

"It's nice to see you eat something substantial," his dining partner commented. "I swear one gust of wind and you would blow away."

He chuckled. "I've heard that before."

"You need to start taking better care of yourself. Do you honestly want to look like a sickly mess when she finally agrees to see you?"

He put his fork down. "I'm doing my best given the circumstance."

"I know," she said softly. "But you've been putting all of your energy into Rose. You need to take some time for you."

"What are you suggesting?"

"Do something that relaxes you. Lounge around in bed, read a book, call some mates and go to the pub to watch a match."

"Having Rose around is what relaxes me."

"Well, what did you do before you met Rose?"

"I was miserable before I met Rose."

She shook her head. "I don't believe that."

He shrugged. "You don't have to."

She sighed and reached across the table to rest her hand on his arm. "Do something mindless then. Clean the bloody flat, that's what I do when I need a distraction. Organise the silverware drawer. Take some time away from the hospital, and spend it on you."

The Doctor gave a curt nod and quickly changed the subject to Tom's conference in Paris. Martha knew what he was doing, but allowed it anyway. When they were done with their meal, he paid before Martha couldn't even think twice. She offered to reimburse him, but he insisted. It was the least he could do after everything she'd done for his family.

* * *

When they got back to the hospital, the Doctor stuck around, despite Martha's advice. He stayed only until Amy arrived, as she was the private nurse on duty that night. When they passed in the hall, she offered him a sympathetic smile and an uncharacteristic hug.

"Hanging in there?" she asked kindly.

"I suppose," he answered warily. "You're being awfully nice to me. Why are you being so nice to me?"

She giggled. "Guess you're sort of growing on me and I know how much it must hurt you to not be able to see her. I would go mad if that ever happened to Rory and I."

The Doctor had learned a couple weeks back that Amy was engaged to a fellow nurse named Rory. He met the young man when he'd walked Amy to work one evening and the Doctor was impressed. The way they bantered with one another and how their eyes lit up when they held hands reminded him so much of him and his own wife. "How is Rory?"

"Fine. He's in Leadworth visiting his parents." She made a face.

"Not a fan of Leadworth?"

"Not so much."

"Ah. Well, you're here now, which means I best be going. You make sure-"

"Yes, I'll make sure you get a call if anything changes."

"Goodnight, Amelia."

She rolled her eyes at the use of her full name. "Goodnight, Raggedy Man."

* * *

When he got to his car, he sent a quick text to Jackie, letting her know that he would not be over and planned on spending the night at his and Rose's place, before setting off. Martha was right on one thing. He hadn't spent much time there since Rose's accident and it was a mess. Honestly, it had been a mess before the accident as well. Between finals at the university, and Rose making all of their Christmas preparations, they hadn't had much time to clean. The couple had vowed that as soon as they returned home from the mansion they would scrub the place down. Of course, that never happened.

* * *

As soon as he got home, he rolled up his sleeves and went straight for the kitchen. He decided cleaning out the fridge would be the first step. After that, he scrubbed every inch of counter and cabinet space, followed by steam mopping the floor. Next came the living area. Thankfully, they'd decided against getting a tree for the flat since they were spending the holiday with her parents, so he didn't have to worry about cleaning up after a dead tree. Instead, he carefully boxed the few decorations Rose had sat out. After the bookshelf had been reorganised (not that it had needed it) and the carpets vacuumed, He moved on to the loo across from the guest room. Not much needed to be done in there, as it was rarely used, but he went ahead and dumped the waste bin and mopped the floors for good measure. The guest room was in a similar state, since it's usual occupant was Tony Tyler and he hadn't used it in a good few months. He wasn't sure when Rose had last changed the sheets on the bed and went ahead changed those with the spares kept in the hall closet.

He saved their bedroom for last. He walked in and his eyes immediately fell on her side of the bed. He smiled warmly. God, she could be such a slob, but he loved her anyway. Clothes were spread across the floor from where she had been deciding what to pack and take to her parent's. He also spotted the lingerie she'd been wearing the last night they had spent there together. Of course, she hadn't worn it for long.

The Doctor felt a twinge and ordered himself to take deep, calming breaths. Back when he was a full Time Lord, he had incredible control. While he had always found Rose physically attractive, he could control his own body's responses to her. Now that he was human, he could not. And Rose loved it. Took pride in it, actually. The grin she got when she made his barriers fall was like the cat who got the canary.

He missed his wife. He physically missed his wife. It had been so long since they... Since he... He hadn't allowed himself to indulge. It somehow seemed wrong and he couldn't help but feel guilty anytime his hand began to lower. It wasn't right. His wife, his Rose, was lying in a hospital bed, scared out of her mind, with no idea who she was. How bloody unfair is that!?

He moved to his side of the bed and flopped down. His eyes rested on the photo album sitting propped up on his nightstand. It had been a present from Rose, given to him the night before their wedding. The book was filled with pictures of a seductively posed Rose, wearing absolutely nothing, save for a pair of lacy knickers and a string of pearls. He knew on the front page their was a letter she'd written to go along with the album, and he immediately flipped it open, desperate to hear her words.

_Hello, love!_

_Surprise! I got you a present. One I think you will enjoy greatly. I know you're not happy about us having to spend the night apart, but it's a human tradition and you're human now. So... HA! I will miss you terribly though and I'm secretly hoping you'll miss me just as much. So as you lie in bed, all alone, I want you to open this album. Open this and think of me. Because I was thinking of you in every single picture. _

_I love you so much. I know I say it all the time, but I can't say it enough. You are my world. When I think back to the night we met... such a long time ago... I can hardly believe that life's brought us here. Tomorrow we will be married. I know legally we'll become Dr. and Mrs. Smith, but to me, we're just cementing what we already are. The Doctor and Rose. The stuff of legends. I made my vow to you a long time ago and tomorrow I'll make it again. Forever, my love._

_Always,_

_Rose Tyler._

_Former Shop Girl._

_Defender of the Earth._

_(Almost) Wife to the Doctor._

He slowly began leafing through the pages, drinking in the sight of his gorgeous wife, posing provocatively and without abandon. Rose assured him that there had been no photographer involved, just herself and her camera with a self timer. They were the only two people who knew these pictures existed.

Without realising it, his right hand had drifted towards the button on his trousers. Within seconds, he had himself in hand, seeking the release his body craved. Imagining his wife whispering words of encouragement in his ear, he finished in an embarrassing amount of time. Rose would have preened with satisfaction had she been present. He closed his eyes and let his ragged breaths return to normal, before finally forcing himself off the bed.

He quickly stripped the soiled sheets and replaced them with new ones, before taking a nice long cold shower, trying desperately to force the memories of him and Rose sharing that shower, out of his mind. Finally clean and changed into a fresh pair of jim jams, he allowed himself to curl up on Rose's side of the bed. Clutching her pillow tightly, he fell asleep.

* * *

He awoke several hours later to the sound of his mobile phone going off. Fumbling for light he saw that it was five minutes after seven. Blimey, he hadn't slept that long since before the accident. He found his mobile lying on the floor (it must have fallen out of his trouser pocket) and felt his stomach clench when the caller id claimed it was the hospital.

"Hello, yes? Martha? Owen?" he answered frantically.

"It's Martha, Doctor."

"Martha, is everything okay? Is Rose..."

"Rose is doing great. In fact, that's why I'm calling. She was wondering if she could see you today."

* * *

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